Draft-gear yoke.



C. J. NASH.

DRAF T GEARYOKE. APPLICATION rxLED SEPT. 18.4915.

Patented Sept. 5, 1916.

earns sans? este.

CHARLES J'. NASH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNR T0 UNIVERSAL DRAFT GEARATTACHMENT CO., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION F ILLINOIS.

DRAFT-GEAR lYOKIE.

. Specification of Letters Patent.

Patenten seat.; e., i sie.,

Application led September 18, 1915. Serial No. 51,365.

' To all whom z5 may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. NASH, a

citizen of the United States, and resident of.

Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, `have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Draft-Gear Yokes, of whichthe followingis a specification, and which yare illustrated'inthe accompanyingdrawings, forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to draft gear yokes andp'more particularly tothose which are constructed for detachable connection with the couplerand provide yfor a sliding movement ofthe coupler butt within the yoke.

Draft gear yokes of this type aremore especially intended for use inconnectionl with shock absorbing .mechanism which is required to beassembled within the yoke before being applied to the'car. It istherefore important that the yoke and couplerr butt may be readilyconnected after the yoke 'and contained shock absorbing mechanism.

have been applied to the car and 'that the form of connection shall besuch as to possess the requisite strength for withstanding the pullingstresses and to aiford ample resistance'against wear incident to therelative sliding movement of the coupler butt and yoke in batting.

The object of the invention is to provide a draft yoke of the typedescribed and of improved constructiony `having increased strength andresistance against wear and insuring that the yoke and coupler may beeasily connected or disconnected.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a central longitudinalsectional view through thel yoke, the position of the coupler butt whenconnected therewith being indicated by dotted lines; Fig. 2 .is a plan'vviewof the yokeg, Fig. 3 is a plan sectional View taken on the line3M?) of Fig. l; Fig. 4C

vis a front end view of the yoke; Fig. 5 is a I l the coupler butt..

The body portion of the yoke will usually comprise the upper and lowerstraps l0 and 11 for extending above and below the shock absorbingelements (not shown). straps are connected at their rear ends to providea rear follower engaging portion 12. At their forward ends, the upperand lower These straps 10, 1 1, are connected by side plates 13, 14,forming a socket 16 for receiving the coupler butt, as 15.

The upper strap 10 is depressed at its eX-I treme forward end to form adepending draft shoulder 17 for 'engagement with the upper part of thecoupler butt. rlhe lower strapll, on the other hand, is depressedthroughout all that part of its forward end `cessi'vely introducedthrough openings 21 in side plates 13, llpthe shim 19 being enteredfirst. As the shim 19 is wider .than the key :20 and the key is thickerthan the shim, the openings 21 are of angular shape, -to permit theentrance of both of these parts.

The purpose of the Shim 19 is to support the coupler butt 15 in elevatedposition for the engagement of its upper portion with the draft shoulder17. It also serves as a wear plate upon which the 'coupler butt slideslV.der side of the shim `is beveled to rest upon the inclined floor plate18 of the socket 1d' The insertion of the Vkey 2() through the openings2l, after the insertion of the shim 19 is permitted by making the twoend portions of theshim of reduced width, as indicated at22, 23, and bymoving the shim backwardly beneath the coupler butt when it reaches acentral position with reference to the yoke.v The reduced end portions22, 23, of the shim and the key 9.0, then serve to completely lill theopenings 21. The manipulation of the shim incidentto its insertionandwithdrawal are facilitated if the floor plate 18 is apertured, asindicated at 24, and an aperture 25 is formed in the shim.

The key 20 is of rectangular' shape in cross section and provides anabrupt :draft shoulder for engagement with the lower portion ofthecoupler butt. To prevent longitudinal displacement of the key, lugs2G are formed thereon adjacent one end and the other end of the keyisprovided with ice openings 27 for receiving Va cotter (not shown). Ifdesired, the key may be made' of reduced weight by being formed hollow,x

and the bending of the key by draft stresses is prevented by providingan upstanding lug 28 upon the floor plate 18 in front of the key. It.vwill be understood that this lug is only to be of such height that itwill .perinto the coupler butt clearing the draft shoulder 17 when thekey 20 and shim 19 are removed.

The construction provides that while the ,key 20 receives the forwardthrust of the coupler butt, all of the wear incident to the top wall ofthe socket and alined angular openings in the two upright walls of t esoeket near its floor plate, the height of t e socket being greater thanthe depth of the coupler butt, a shim constructed to be entered throughthe opening in one of the upright walls of the socket to support thecoupler butt in elevated position -within the socket, the length of theshim being as great Uopies of.' this patent may be obtained for as theexternal width of the socket and the width of the shim intermediate itsends being substantially equal to the greatest width of the said openingthrough which it is l. entered, the ends of the shim being of less widthby an amount equal to the width of the narrower part of said opening,and a key of greater depth 'than the shim extending through the socketandthe said openings in front ofl the shim.`

2. -A yoke liaving'fapfour-sided butt-receiving socket at its forwardend with a l butt-retaining shoulder extending across the top wall ofythe socket ,and alinedv openings in the two upright walls of the socketnear its Hoor plate, the height of the socket being greater than thedepth of the coupler. butt,

` a key extending transversely through the socket and the said openingsto provide a butt-retaining shoulder on the floor plate of thesocket,and a supporting lug rising vtrom the floor plate of the socket in frontof the e key. A

3. A yoke having a four-sided brtt-receiving socket at its forward endwith a -butt-retaining shoulder extending across the top wall of thesocket and alined openings in the two upright walls of -the'socket nearits Hoor plate, a removable coupler butt engaging member extendingtransversely through the socket and the said openings, the floor plateof the socket and the said coupler butt engaging member both beingcentrally apertured.

CHARLES J.- NASH.

ive cents each, by addressing the Commisqioaer'o Patente, Washington,'.D. C."

